PhaedreusPlease post a link to your review of firecards if you would be so kind.

WildmanBeing prepared is far from insecure. Js,

Great tips everyone, Thanks.

We have strike anywhere here, and I prefer them. I do lke the storproof matches but they dont come with enough strkers for the amount of matches. I typicly put six in each kit I build. have longed for a strike anywhere version.

You could col the striker strip facing the case walls in a match safe, it works for me and thats how coleman packs thier matches and striker in the safes I buy at wal-mart.

How do all of you glue your striker strips to the inner lids of your kits? No glue I've tried so far works reliably long term. II cut the striker strip from coleman in half and using it's adhesive back to secure in out Altoid kits, but the strips get costly quickly.Thanks.

PhaedreusPlease post a link to your review of firecards if you would be so kind.

Here, I'll copy the review from Amazon (I wrote it so presumably that's okay):I purchased this fairly recently but given how well it's worked in several applications I feel I have to post a review. This stuff is pretty remarkable! I stumbled on it while viewing a video on youtube by PeakSurvival. Apparently this stuff is used by UK military units and is also found in Canada, but it's pretty hard to find stateside. I must say it's excellent. It's very rigid, which is nice for me since it survives being vacuum packed without being totally crushed. It seems to be impregnated with paraffin, although it smells a bit like beeswax when burned. It burns like a candle, giving good heat for quite a while. Yet if you take your time and really fray it up (ie. shred the end with a knife or peel it apart into layers) it will light pretty well with just a spark. I lit the stuff with a Spark-Lite.

Burn time is really superb. Under good conditions you could use a 1/4" x 1" piece to light a campfire- and you get six cards, each 4" x 8".

So many products are overhyped (eg WetFire) that it's really refreshing to find a product virtually unknown in the US market that performs this well. I intend to buy many more sheets for preparedness and camping/hiking kits. At the risk of spouting hyperbole, anyone creating a survival fire kit would be foolish not to at least consider including a couple square inches of Tinder Card. It's cheap, light, compact and effective.

Very good stuff! Worthy of five stars.

I will add that in the two years since I reviewed it there I've used the stuff virtually every time I've gone out. Really good stuff.

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“You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions.” Naguib Mahfouz

The firecards work well. Essentially similar idea to Spark Lite Tinder Quik, different form factor. They have both advantages and disadvantages compared with the Tinder Quik. How you pack stuff and carry it is more the determining factor than performance. I do find that the Tinder Quik is quicker and easier to fluff up and get ready to accept a spark. One reason I prefer it for my kits. Plus, Tinder Quilk is easier to find and typically less expensive.

The firecards work well. Essentially similar idea to Spark Lite Tinder Quik, different form factor. They have both advantages and disadvantages compared with the Tinder Quik. How you pack stuff and carry it is more the determining factor than performance. I do find that the Tinder Quik is quicker and easier to fluff up and get ready to accept a spark. One reason I prefer it for my kits. Plus, Tinder Quilk is easier to find and typically less expensive.

I found Tinder Quik is a lot more water resistant than Tinder Card. I agree with your other observations.

Thanks Phaedreus, Doug and Brangdon. Very good review and info. I do use Tinder Quick in most of my kits when I have them on hand. I much prefer them to the Coghlans fire tabs. I'll be ordering some fire cards. I've also been looking at the little fire starters made by Zippo, they appear to be across between afire card and a tinder quick. And it looks as if they would fit nicely in the nooks and crannies of a PSK. One thing I used to do was use business card stock, print signals, morse and other tips on them then saturate with hot wax, making an information sheet and a source of tinder. Hence my inquiry if they could be written on. I'll have to update my information and print some more of them.

The firecards work well. Essentially similar idea to Spark Lite Tinder Quik, different form factor. They have both advantages and disadvantages compared with the Tinder Quik. How you pack stuff and carry it is more the determining factor than performance. I do find that the Tinder Quik is quicker and easier to fluff up and get ready to accept a spark. One reason I prefer it for my kits. Plus, Tinder Quilk is easier to find and typically less expensive.

I found Tinder Quik is a lot more water resistant than Tinder Card. I agree with your other observations.

+1 to this. I really really love the Tinder Quik as well, but if you get it wet beyond a quick splash it soaks up water and won't light well. I once soaked some for five minutes and it was game over. But the Tinder Card is much more water proof. It is true that the TQ is easier to light without any tools; to light the TCard with a spark you really need to fray and fluff it. If you have a knife that's pretty easy; without a knife it takes some work.

One great thing about the T-card is that it can easily be cut with a sharp knife into shapes that fit wherever. For instance I will cut rounds of it and put them into the cap of my UCO Storm Match Case. I will also cut a few strips about 1/4" x 2" and stick then down among the matches. You can also cut a card to fit an Altoids tin.

The best solution IMOHO is to use multiple methods! I often vacuum seal Tinder Q and Tinder Card together in small mylar bags. Usually I even put a tablet or two of ESBIT 4g fuel in there with them.

_________________________
“You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions.” Naguib Mahfouz

I have mylar bags that sealed a couple years ago that still look like new. I have a couple that I have deliberately carried in my pack for a couple years with the idea of seeing how they hold up. So far so good.

_________________________
“You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions.” Naguib Mahfouz

The most reliable way I've found to make fire is synthetic tinder and windproof/water proof matches followed by ferrorod, followed by a flint (not piezo) Bic lighter.

Funny, I have been less than excited by matches since it is almost impossible to get proper strike-anywhere matches. Safety matches requires TWO things not to get lost and kept dry while keeping both separate. I haven't figured out a safe way to do it.

When I had sufficient quantities of strike-anywheres, I kept some upright and others upside-down in a waterproof case after I coated them in clear nail polish. In one of my moves, I lost the ammo case where I stored several boxes. The current strike-anywheres don't work as well. Not sure why.

Where does one store the safety striker in or near the match case?

I agree flint lighters and ferro rods are almost bombproof.

I've had it burned into my brain to always have at least 3 forms for flame and 3 forms of tinder. For me, that means a BIC, a ferro rod and matches plus PJ cotton balls, fatwood and esbit tabs. There's a ferro rod in my of my fixed blades but I also carry at least two in my pockets when I'm out, have a lighter in all my cook kits, and also have a sparklite in my PSK. I add more in the winter. LOL!

Sometimes it seems like overkill, especially since we don't often have a campfire, but.....

I bought a box of stormproof matches this year just to see what all the fuss was about and HOLY COW those suckers work well!

We were in pretty close to desperate need of fire while on a hike this winter after bacpacboy fell into a creek. It was well below freezing, the wind was howling, there was snow and rain in the air, and all the firestarting materials we found were either soaked or frozen. To make matters worse, even without the dunking, my fingers were freezing and I had a hard time manipulating my BIC.

One strike of one stormproof match, a PJ cotton ball and some fatwood shavings started flawlessly and a driftwood platform. Then I added some split wood and built a twig fire above and we were enjoying hot chocolate and noodles while his gloves and socks dried beside our little fire.

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